mackerel shark

any of several fierce sharks of the family Lamidae, including the great white shark and the mako.

[1810-20]

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Any of several temperate-water sharks (genus Lamna) in a family (Isuridae) that also includes the great white shark and the mako shark group.

The swift, active mackerel sharks have a crescent-shaped tail and slender teeth. They are gray or blue-gray above and paler below and about 10 ft (3 m) long. They eat fishes such as herring, mackerel, and salmon, sometimes taking fishermen's catches and damaging nets. They are fished commercially for food. Common species include the Atlantic mackerel shark, or porbeagle (L. nasus), and the Pacific mackerel shark, or salmon shark (L ditropis).

Mackerel shark (Lamna nasus)

Painting by Richard Ellis/Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

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▪ fish genus

      (genus Lamna), any member of a group of sharks in the family Isuridae. The name is also used as a collective name for the family, which includes, in addition, the white shark and the mako shark groups.

      The genus Lamna includes the Atlantic mackerel shark, or porbeagle (L. nasus); and the Pacific mackerel shark, or salmon shark (L. ditropis).

      Mackerel sharks are swift, active fishes with crescent-shaped tails and slender teeth, most of which are flanked by small, sharp cusps. These sharks are gray or blue-gray above and paler below and grow to a length of about 3 m (10 feet). They inhabit temperate waters and prey on fishes such as herring, mackerel, and salmon, sometimes taking fishermen's catches and damaging nets in the process. They are fished commercially for food.

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